Tuesday, May 23, 2017

Pickled Pineapple Two Ways #fijchallenge

We are now in the fifth month of our year-long food preservation Mastery Challenge hosted by Marisa of the popular canning blog, Food In Jars. This month we are focusing on cold pack preserving. Also known as raw pack, to cold pack something simply means the food is raw when it's packed in the jars. Hot liquid is added and then jars are put in a bath of boiling water or steam. The purpose of this challenge is to expand our skills while preserving a food ingredient that we will actually use. This time I pickled pineapple using two different flavor profiles.

Pineapple might sound like a crazy thing to pickle, but think about it in a salad or a sandwich and all the flavor it can bring. Also imagine the dimension this would add to a cheese plate, or any meat or veggie dish. Since we are in between seasons in the PNW, I found that pineapple is an easy and convenient ingredient to bridge winter and spring produce.

The first batch I made was a spicy pickled pineapple which was very spicy and tangy. The heat comes from thin slices of jalapeno peppers and their seeds. The tang is from rice wine vinegar and fresh lime juice. My only concern was the acidity of the rice wine vinegar which was 4.2% as everything I’ve been reading says you need 5% for food safety. This recipe is good for 2 weeks stored in the refrigerator.

The second style was a refrigerator style sweet pickle. For this batch I used whole cloves, nutmeg, cardamom, cinnamon sticks and apple cider vinegar. After 24 hours we tasted the juicy wedge-like pickles and were not disappointed. They were everything I thought they would be, sweet, tangy with the wonderful earthy and floral flavors shining right through.

Cheri Savory Spoon

Mysavoryspoon was first started in 2010 as a way to journal recipes that I had collected from cookbooks, magazines, family and friends. Most everything was savory, using legumes and whole grains. Along the way I discovered a love for baking. Now a couple times a month you might see some type of sweet pie or treat.

When I saw you canned pineapple and jalapeño.....The first image that came to my mind, was a pineapple and jalapeño margarita. This is a great idea. Your post expanded my horizons. I never thought to can pineapple but, why wouldn't you. I buy it in cans all the time.Thanks for the inspiration.

There's got to be so much pride seeing these jars in your fridge that you made yourself. I never heard of pickled pineapple...it's always great to learn something new. Thank you...and have a great Memorial Day weekend!

I wasn't aware of the acidity content being an issue for preserving. I'm so glad you mention that, Cheri! I do think this would be a great addition to a cheese plate. Thanks for another interesting and unique recipe!